Which of the following conclusions is/are valid?
- 1.Only a serious offence as categorised by the revised JJ Act, justifies the transfer of a case to the adult judicial system.
- 2.The JJ Act, 2021, categorises an offence as a serious offence based on the maximum sentence it carries, rather than on the minimum sentence.
Select the answer using the code given below.
Answer & explanation
Answer: (b) 2 only
The 2021 amendment defines a serious offence by the maximum sentence (seven years or more) when there is no minimum sentence. Transfer to the adult system is linked to heinous offences, and activists say serious offences do not merit it — the reverse of statement 1.
- ✗ 1. Trial as adults is allowed for heinous offences; for serious offences, activists say they do 'not merit the transfer of a case to the adult criminal justice system'.
- ✓ 2. A serious offence 'has no minimum sentence, but has a maximum sentence of seven years or more' — it is defined by the maximum sentence.
Remember · Keep categories apart: note which label (heinous or serious) the passage attaches to which consequence.
Question and answer: UPSC's provisional GS Paper II (2026, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·